Russia probe reaches a top ofﬁcial in White House

A January 12, 2016 photo shows the White House at dusk in Washington, DC. US President Barack Obama is set to deliver his final State of the Union address this evening.

A January 12, 2016 photo shows the White House at dusk in Washington, DC. US President Barack Obama is set to deliver his final State of the Union address this evening.

Photo: MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images

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Probes into Russia, Trump campaign

An FBI investigation and congressional probes into the Trump campaign and contacts with Russia continue to shadow the administration, each new development a focus of White House press briefings and attention on Capitol Hill. President Donald Trump has dismissed the story as "fake news" and raised allegations of politically inspired spying by the Obama administration, but the investigations show no sign of abating anytime soon. Here's a look at some key details less

An FBI investigation and congressional probes into the Trump campaign and contacts with Russia continue to shadow the administration, each new development a focus of White House press briefings and attention on ... more

Attorney General Jeff Sessions was questioned for hours in the special counsel's Russia investigation, the Justice Department said, as prosecutors moved closer to a possible interview with President Donald Trump about whether he took steps to obstruct an FBI probe into contacts between Russia and his 2016 campaign. The interview with Sessions in January made him the highest-ranking Trump administration official, and first Cabinet member, known to have submitted to questioning. It came as special counsel Robert Mueller investigates whether Trump's actions in office, including the firing of FBI Director James Comey, constitute improper efforts to stymie the FBI investigation.

The same day former Trump adviser Steve Bannon was called to testify behind closed doors for the House investigation, the New York Times reported that he was subpoenaed by Mueller to testify before a grand jury.

On Jan. 8, The Washington Post reported that Mueller spoke with Trump's attorney's indicating that he would likely seek to interview the president as part of his investigation. Later, in a news conference with the prime minister of Norway, President Tump told a reporter that an interview out not be necessary because "there is no collusion."

Former national security adviser Michael Flynn pleaded guilty Friday to lying to the FBI, becoming the first Trump White House official to face criminal charges and admit guilt so far in the wide-ranging election investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller. Flynn also agreed to cooperate with Mueller's probe, which focuses on Russian meddling in the 2016 election and possible coordination between Russia and Donald Trump's campaign aimed at sending the Republican businessman to the White House.

Papadopoulos pleads guilty to making false statements to the FBI, as part of apparent agreement to cooperate with Mueller's investigation. Mueller files 12 count criminal indictments against Manafort and Gates.

July 2017: FBI agents conducted a raid at former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort's home in Alexandria, Virginia. Papadopoulos arrested by FBI at Dulles International Airport.

July 2017: FBI agents conducted a raid at former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort's home in Alexandria, Virginia. Papadopoulos arrested by FBI at Dulles International Airport.

Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images

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June 2017: Manafort files paperwork with the Justice Department retroactively disclosing under the Foreign Agents Registration Act that his firm received more than $17 million working for the government of Ukraine between 2012 and 2014. The Washington Post reports that Mueller is investigating Trump for obstruction of justice.

June 2017: Manafort files paperwork with the Justice Department retroactively disclosing under the Foreign Agents Registration Act that his firm received more than $17 million working for the government of

May 2017: Trump fires Comey. Former FBI Director Robert Mueller is appointed as special counsel to take over the probe.

May 2017: Trump fires Comey. Former FBI Director Robert Mueller is appointed as special counsel to take over the probe.

Photo: Jon Elswick, STF / Associated Press

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January 2017: FBI Director James Comey, who was overseeing the ongoing investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election, briefs Trump on contents of unverified dossier that contains salacious allegations about him and his campaign. Trump inaugurated as 45th President of the United States. Papadopoulos interviewed by the FBI about his contacts with Russians.

January 2017: FBI Director James Comey, who was overseeing the ongoing investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election, briefs Trump on contents of unverified dossier that contains

The New York Times reports that Manafort's name appears on a secret list of payments made by the Yanukovych regime. Manafort resigns from Trump campaign the day after The Associated Press reports he failed to register as a foreign agent after arranging a covert lobbying campaign in the United States on behalf of the Ukrainian Party of Regions.

July 2016: Trump becomes the Republican nominee for president at the party's convention in Cleveland, Ohio. FBI opens investigation into Russian government's attempt to influence the election, including whether members of Trump's campaign are involved.

July 2016: Trump becomes the Republican nominee for president at the party's convention in Cleveland, Ohio. FBI opens investigation into Russian government's attempt to influence the election, including whether

June 2016: Manafort attends meeting at Trump Tower in New York with Russian lawyer named Natalia Veselnitskaya (above), who promised to provide the Trump campaign damaging information about Clinton. Donald Trump Jr. and Jared Kushner are also in the meeting. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says his website will publish a batch of Clinton emails.

June 2016: Manafort attends meeting at Trump Tower in New York with Russian lawyer named Natalia Veselnitskaya (above), who promised to provide the Trump campaign damaging information about Clinton. Donald

May 2016: Manafort promoted to campaign chairman and chief strategist, taking command of the Trump campaign.

May 2016: Manafort promoted to campaign chairman and chief strategist, taking command of the Trump campaign.

Photo: Patrick T. Fallon / Bloomberg

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March 2016: Manafort joins Trump campaign as a volunteer consultant. George Papadopoulos is named one of five foreign policy advisers to the Trump campaign, and meets with people associated with the Russia government amid discussions to set up a meeting between Trump and Putin.

March 2016: Manafort joins Trump campaign as a volunteer consultant. George Papadopoulos is named one of five foreign policy advisers to the Trump campaign, and meets with people associated with the Russia

September 2015: The FBI contacts the Democratic National Committee's IT help desk, cautioning that at least one of its computers has been compromised by Russian hackers. A technician scans the system but fails to find evidence of the intrusion.

September 2015: The FBI contacts the Democratic National Committee's IT help desk, cautioning that at least one of its computers has been compromised by Russian hackers. A technician scans the system but fails

June 2015: New York real estate billionaire Donald J. Trump announces his candidacy for U.S. president as a Republican.

June 2015: New York real estate billionaire Donald J. Trump announces his candidacy for U.S. president as a Republican.

Photo: Richard Drew

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February 2014: Following months of violent clashes between protesters and police across Ukraine, Yanukovych flees Ukraine and enters exile in Russia. U.S. government later opens investigation into Manafort's foreign lobbying and political work.

February 2014: Following months of violent clashes between protesters and police across Ukraine, Yanukovych flees Ukraine and enters exile in Russia. U.S. government later opens investigation into Manafort's

February 2010: With the help of his Russian patrons and his American political consultants, Yanukovych is elected president of Ukraine.

February 2010: With the help of his Russian patrons and his American political consultants, Yanukovych is elected president of Ukraine.

Photo: AP

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2006: Paul Manafort and Rick Gates (left) begin work as consultants for the Party of Regions, a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine led by Victor Yanukovych, the country's former prime minister. Manafort is a veteran Republican political operative who worked on the U.S. presidential campaigns of Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bob Dole.

2006: Paul Manafort and Rick Gates (left) begin work as consultants for the Party of Regions, a pro-Russian political party in Ukraine led by Victor Yanukovych, the country's former prime minister. Manafort is

WASHINGTON - The law enforcement investigation into possible coordination between Russia and the Trump campaign has identified a current White House official as a significant person of interest, showing that the probe is reaching into the highest levels of government, according to people familiar with the matter.

The senior White House adviser under scrutiny by investigators is someone close to the president, according to these people, who would not further identify the official.

The revelation comes as the investigation appears to be entering a more overtly active phase, with investigators shifting from work that has remained largely hidden from the public to conducting interviews and using a grand jury to issue subpoenas. The intensity of the probe is expected to accelerate in the coming weeks, the people said.

The sources emphasized that investigators remain keenly interested in people who previously wielded influence in the Trump campaign and administration but are no longer part of it, including former national security adviser Michael Flynn and former campaign chairman Paul Manafort.

Four months into a turbulent term with his White House in chaos, President Donald Trump is embarking on his first international trip, a five-stop marathon through the Middle East and Europe. (May 19)

Media: Associated Press

Flynn resigned in February after disclosures that he had lied to administration officials about his contacts with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Current administration officials who have acknowledged contacts with Russian officials include President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as well as Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

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People familiar with the investigation said the intensifying effort does not mean that criminal charges are near, or that any such charges will result. Earlier this week, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein appointed former FBI director Robert Mueller III to serve as special counsel and lead the investigation into Russian meddling.

It is unclear exactly how Mueller's leadership will affect the direction of the probe, and he is already bringing in new people to work on the team. Those familiar with the case said its significance had increased before Mueller's appointment.

Although the case began quietly last July as an effort to determine whether any Trump associates coordinated with Russian operatives to meddle in the presidential election campaign, the investigative work now being done by the FBI also includes determining whether any financial crimes were committed by people close to the president. The people familiar with the matter said the probe has sharpened into something more fraught for the White House, the FBI and the Justice Department - particularly because of the public steps investigators know they now need to take, the people said.

When subpoenas are issued or interviews are requested, it is possible the people being asked to talk or provide documents will reveal publicly what they were asked about.

A small group of lawmakers known as the Gang of Eight was notified of the change in tempo and focus in the investigation at a classified briefing Wednesday evening, the people familiar with the matter said. Then-FBI Director James Comey publicly confirmed the existence of the investigation in March.

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said, "As the president has stated before, a thorough investigation will confirm that there was no collusion between the campaign and any foreign entity.''

While there has been a loud public debate in recent days over the question of whether the president might have attempted to obstruct justice in his private dealings with Comey, whom Trump fired last week, people familiar with the matter said investigators on the case are more focused on Russian influence operations and possible financial crimes.

The FBI's investigation seeks to determine whether and to what extent Trump associates were in contact with Kremlin operatives, what business dealings they might have had in Russia, and whether they in any way facilitated the hacking and publishing of emails from the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman, John Podesta, during the presidential campaign. Several congressional committees are also investigating, though their probes could not produce criminal charges.

A grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, recently issued a subpoena for records related to Flynn's business, the Flynn Intel Group, which was paid more than $500,000 by a company owned by a Turkish American businessman close to top Turkish officials, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Flynn Intel Group was paid for research on Fethullah Gulen, a cleric who Turkey's current president believes was responsible for a coup attempt last summer. Flynn retroactively registered with the Justice Department in March as a paid foreign agent for Turkish interests.

Separately from the probe now run by Mueller, Flynn is being investigated by the Pentagon's top watchdog for his foreign payments. Flynn also received $45,000 to appear in 2015 with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a dinner for RT, a Kremlin-controlled media organization.

Flynn discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia with Russia's ambassador to the United States during the month before Trump took office, and he withheld that fact from the vice president. That prompted then-acting attorney general Sally Yates to warn the White House's top lawyer that Flynn might be susceptible to blackmail. Flynn stepped down after The Washington Post reported on the contents of the call.

The president has nonetheless seemed to defend his former adviser. A memo by Comey alleged that Trump asked that the probe into Flynn be shut down.

The White House also has acknowledged that Kushner met with Kislyak, the Russian ambassador to the United States, in late November. Kushner also has acknowledged that he met with the head of a Russian development bank, Vnesheconombank, which has been under U.S. sanctions since July 2014. The president's son-in-law initially omitted contacts with foreign leaders from a national security questionnaire, though his lawyer has said publicly that he submitted the form prematurely and informed the FBI soon afterward that he would provide an update.

Vnesheconombank handles development for the state, and in early 2015, a man purporting to be one of its New York-based employees was arrested and accused of being an unregistered spy.

That man - Evgeny Buryakov - ultimately pleaded guilty and was eventually deported. He had been in contact with former Trump adviser Carter Page, though Page has said he shared only "basic immaterial information and publicly available research documents" with the Russian. Page was the subject of a secret warrant last year issued by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, based on suspicions he might have been acting as an agent of the Russian government, according to people familiar with the matter. Page has denied any wrongdoing, and accused the government of violating his civil rights.

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The Washington Post's Ellen Nakashima and Ashley Parker contributed to this report.